politics: Last News

Stephen Colbert has added his voice to those encouraging Joe Biden to stand down from the 2024 US presidential election race.The president performed poorly in the first debate against Donald Trump on June 27, appearing to lose his way several times, causing many of his supporters to call into question his ability to continue in the fight for the White House.In Colbert’s first Late Night show since the debate, he said watching Biden’s disastrous performance “took a year off my life”.“I think that this is actually a battle of two virtues,” Colbert continued. “One of them is perseverance.

Conservative Party’s landslide defeat to Labour in the 2024 General Election.While Sunak – who will now be replaced as Prime Minster by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer – delivered a post-defeat speech to his constituents in Richmond and Northallerton, YouTube prankster Niko Omilana stood behind him holding a piece of paper with the letter “L” on it.The prank, which referred to Sunak as a “loser”, was claimed by Omilana shortly after the speech. Taking to social media, where he has over 7.6 million followers, he wrote: “Hold this L rishi, your time is up.”Omilana was able to make it onto the stage because he stood as an independent candidate in the constituency, winning a total of 160 votes.

Glastonbury migrant boat, calling it “vile”.The MP responded to the new Banksy artwork on Sky News (via The Guardian). The dummy-filled boat was launched in the crowds of IDLES‘ set on the Other Stage on Friday (June 28), unbeknownst to the band, during their pro-immigration track ‘Danny Nedelko’.Cleverly called the stunt “vile”, saying: “There are a bunch of people there joking and celebrating about criminal actions which costs lives, people die.

Bombay Bicycle Club on stage at Glastonbury on Friday (28 June), Blur frontman Damon Albarn addressed the crowd about Palestine and “the importance of voting” in the United Kingdom’s general election next week.The indie band brought out Albarn for their evening set at the Other stage to perform ‘Heaven’, a cut from their latest album ‘My Big Day’ on which Albarn features.After thanking Bombay Bicycle Club frontman Jack Steadman, Albarn took a moment to address “three things” with the crowd, asking them to show him how they felt about Palestine. “Are you pro-Palestine?” he asked, to cheers.

after a magistrate judge ruled a lawsuit against the Department of Defense over the discharges of gay veterans could move forward.Biden issued a statement on X Wednesday morning announcing the decision.Despite courage and sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.I'm using my clemency authority to pardon certain former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves. pic.twitter.com/KquoMizp1V— President Biden (@POTUS) June 26, 2024“Today, I am righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted for simply being themselves,” the statement read.

6-3 decision along partisan lines the right-wing justices on the U.S. Supreme Court once again targeted the landmark 2015 Obergefell same-sex marriage decision, leading liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor to sound “alarm bells” on marriage equality in her dissent a legal expert says, warning that they may try to “roll it back.”The case involves Sandra Muñoz, a U.S.

Enter Shikari’s Rou Reynolds has spoken to NME backstage at Download 2024, and told us how the upcoming general election could be vital in the survival of the UK’s grassroots music venues.The frontman caught up with us while at this year’s edition of the Donington Park Festival, shortly before Enter Shikari kicked off their first performance on the Apex Stage (barring the post-COVID pilot edition).The set came following the hugely positive response to their latest album ‘A Kiss For The Whole World’, and ahead of the band’s upcoming run of UK live shows – which will be a much more intimate affair after their recent arena tour.The band have been vocal champions of grassroots gig spaces and the Music Venue Trust. Last year, various figures from the UK grassroots live music scene told NME about how 2023 was the “worst year for venue closures” – with 125 grassroots venues shutting down.

NME about why getting young people engaged matters.Just Vote recently launched their Crash The Party campaign, encouraging people aged 18-34 to step up and make their voices heard. They’ve also enlisted over “50 music industry” including artists, record labels and festivals to help spread the message – with the added opportunity of being able to win tickets to Glastonbury and Reading & Leeds.Ahead of the UK’s General Election on July 4, people have until 11.59pm tonight to register to be eligible to vote.

Serj Tankian has criticised Imagine Dragons for going ahead with their controversial gig in Azerbaijan, stating that he has “zero respect for those guys”.The dispute came over a show that Imagine Dragons had plans for in the country’s capital city, Baku, which some perceived as being an endorsement of Azerbeijan’s authoritarian President Ilham Aliyev.Last summer, the System Of A Down frontman reached out to the band and wrote them a “kind” personal letter, urging them to pull out of the Baku Olympic Stadium show. In the letter, he stated that proceeding with the gig “would help whitewash the dictatorial regime’s image” (via Louder).“I really feel that performing in Azerbaijan would have a negative impact on your brand as well,” his letter added, also making a nod towards a news report which stated that the country was preparing genocide against ethnic Armenians in its Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Prior to this week, it had been a relatively sleepy few months for the RICO trial of Young Thug and YSL. The Atlanta rapper has sat in a Fulton County jail since May 2022, alleged by the state of Georgia to be the ringleader of a criminal street gang (six additional felonies connected to gang, drug, and firearm violations were added in August 2022).

System Of A Down‘s Serj Tankian has weighed in on the current situation in Palestine and the movement to boycott companies with ties to Israel.Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 in response to its occupation of Palestinian territories, killing 1,189 people. Israel’s ongoing operations in the interim have killed 37,702 Palestinians [via Al Jazeera].Recently, record labels, promoters and more have called for a cultural boycott of Israel through the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), an offshoot of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement (BDS) which was behind the huge wave of drop-outs from The Great Escape, Latitude Festival and Download Festival this year.In an interview with NME about his new autobiography Down With The System, Tankian has given his take on current world events and the ongoing boycotts.

Download 2024 yesterday (June 10) over its partnership with Barclays Bank – which has ties to Israel – have announced a show together in Birmingham to raise money for Palestine.Pest Control were the first band to pull out of the Donington Park festival, saying that they would not “take part in an event whose sponsor profits from facilitating a genocide.” Later on, Scowl, Speed and Zulu all followed suit, with Scowl revealing that Pest Control had alerted them to the issue.This Friday! A benefit for Palestine

Fleet Foxes ended up being brought into Hunter Biden’s ongoing trial in Delaware when it emerged he had played the band from his phone while receiving a lap dance.The son of the US President has been on trial for allegedly lying about his drug use when purchasing a firearm in 2018. He claimed to be sober at the time despite reports suggesting he was in the throes of a cocaine addiction.Several of Biden’s ex-girlfriends have testified during the trial, including the exotic dancer Zoe Kestan.

Scowl, Speed and Zulu have become the latest bands to pull out of Download 2024 over its partnership with Barclays and the bank’s ties to Israel.The news follows a similar move from Leeds hardcore band Pest Control who announced they would be pulling out earlier today (June 10), saying that they would not “take part in an event whose sponsor profits from facilitating a genocide.”In a statement posted to their social media, Scowl wrote: “We will not be playing Download fest this year due to Barclays Bank sponsorship of the event and Barclays’ connection to Israel and the genocide Israel is committing in Palestine.“Free Palestine!”They directed fans to the Bands Boycott Barclays campaign for more information and thanked Pest Control “for bringing this to our attention”.Meanwhile, Speed wrote on their social media accounts: “SPEED will no longer be playing Download Festival this Friday June 14 due to the recent news of Barclays Banks sponsorship of the event and their involvement in the war in Gaza.”Zulu announced they would be dropping out shortly after. In their statement, they said: “We will not be playing Download Festival as we just got word about Barclays Bank and their sponsorship of the fest.

Richard Hawley had some choice words for prime minister Rishi Sunak at a show in London on Saturday night (June 8).The Sheffield musician was headlining the Eventim Apollo, and before launching into his 2007 classic ‘Tonight The Streets Are Ours’, he shared some thoughts on the current UK General Election campaign.“You know, I’m 57 years old and I’ve seen some fucking arsehole politicians, but Sunak takes the fucking piss,” he said.The Conservative leader called the surprise early election on May 22, which will be held on July 4.“The thing that slaughters me is the fact that literally probably about a week ago, he came up with a stupid fucking idea to enlist teenagers for a year or two years or whatever, poor fuckers, you know what I mean?” Hawley continued.“That bastard couldn’t even manage a day, you know what I mean?”Hawley appears to be referencing the recent Tory pledge to introduce 12 months of mandatory national service for 18-year-olds, should they win the election.

Radiohead‘s Jonny Greenwood has defended being part of a musical project with Israeli musician Dudu Tassa and spoken out against “silencing Israeli artists for being born Jewish in Israel”.Greenwood performed with Tassa in Tel Aviv on May 26. The day before, he reportedly participated in protests calling for hostages held in Gaza to be released and new elections to be held.They played material from their collaborative album of Arabic love songs, ‘Jarak Qaribak’, which was released last year.Greenwood’s performance was criticised by pro-Palestine activists who accused him of “artwashing genocide”.The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), a founding member of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement called for “peaceful, creative pressure on his band Radiohead to convincingly distance itself from this blatant complicity in the crime of crimes, or face grassroots measures.”PACBI also pointed out that at the same time that Greenwood’s concert was taking place, Israeli forces were bombing displaced Palestinians sheltering in tents in Rafah, Gaza, which had prompted a large outcry on social media in the last week.

full report into the state of the sector for 2023, showing the “disaster” facing live music with venues closing at a rate of around two per week. Presented at Westminster, the MVT echoed their calls for a levy on tickets on gigs at arena size and above and for major labels and such to pay back into the grassroots scene, arguing that “the big companies are now going to have to answer for this”.The Music Venue Trust has pushed for this system to be introduced as a way of safeguarding the UK’s talent pipeline, similar to how the Premier League funds local football clubs.

D:Ream have banned Keir Starmer from using their 1993 New Labour anthem ‘Things Can Only Get Better’ in his election campaign.The song enjoyed a resurgence in popularity after it was played through a loudspeaker by protester Steve Bray, with the aim of drowning out Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as he called a surprise General Election for July 4. Within 24 hours, the song had gone viral on social media and entered the iTunes Top 10.The Northern Irish band have previously said that they never enjoyed ‘Things Can Only Get Better’ having a political association.“My first reaction was ‘not again, please let me move on’,” singer Peter Cunnah told NME.

Eric Clapton has shared his stance on Roger Waters‘ outspoken political views, saying that it “takes a lot of guts” and has seen him “suffer from it terribly”.The Pink Floyd icon has made headlines countless times in the past for his often-unfiltered political opinions – namely his criticism of the State of Israel.Just a matter of months ago, he faced multiple accusations of anti-Semitism after speaking out on the Israel-Hamas war.

Sunak v Starmer: The ITV Debate – will be moderated by presenter Julie Etchingham, who also hosted debates in 2015, 2017 and 2019.ITV said it also planned to broadcast an interview programme with other party leaders and a multi-party debate.Michael Jermey, ITV’s director of news and current affairs, said: “Millions of viewers value the election debates. They provide a chance to see and hear the party leaders set out their pitch to the country, debate directly with each other and take questions from voters.“ITV is pleased to be broadcasting the first debate in this year’s election campaign.”Other broadcasters, including the BBC, Channel 4 and Sky News, have not yet announced plans for any televised debates.

James Blunt has shared his thoughts on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s mandatory national service plan, saying it’s “not a bad idea”.The Conservative Party have said that 18-year-olds would be required to participate in a scheme involving military or civilian service, if they win the UK general election on July 4.“This modern form of national service will mean that young people get the skills and the opportunities that they need, which is going to serve them very well in life,” Sunak explained at a recent campaign event (via BBC News).“It is going to foster a culture of service which is going to be incredibly powerful for making our society more cohesive, and in a more uncertain and dangerous world it’s going to strengthen our country’s security and resilience.”In a video on TikTok, the PM said: “As is the case in other countries, we will provide a stipend to help with living costs for those doing the military element alongside their training.“Meanwhile, on the civic side, we will make sure organisations have funding for training and administration.”Singer-songwriter Blunt – who served in the British Army before he got signed as a musician, and was an officer during the Kosovo War – recently spoke about the controversial move at the 2024 Hay Festival.This will change lives #nationalservice #generalelection #uk #rishisunak ♬ original sound – Conservatives “We all know it’s not going to happen, but I think the concept – to understand a bit about serving your community – is not a bad idea,” the ‘You’re Beautiful’ singer reasoned (via the Standard).“The greatest thing about the Army is that we worked together as a team, people from all corners of the UK, and that was a huge benefit.”Blunt continued: “I’m a posh twat and these